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2ll)c €ommonu)caltl) of iHaesacljusctta 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH 



FATS AND THEIR VALUE IN 
THE DIET 




BOSTON 

WRIGHT & POTTER PRINTING CO., STATE PRINTERS 

32 DERNE STREET 

1920 



Reprinted from the Commonhealth, Vol. 5, No. 5, 1918 



\R.Y OF CONGRESS 


HS^l'VE') 


FEB281921 


DOCUMENTS DIVISION 



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Publication of this Document 

approved by the 
Supervisor of Administration. 



FATS AND THEIR VALUE IN THE DIET. 



Alzira Wentworth Sandwall, S.B., Health Instructor on Foods, Massachusetts 
Department of Public Health. 



FAT, a term which includes the edible oils as well as fat, is avail- 
able in many forms with a large range of prices. Olive oil, 
cottonseed oil, lard, crisco, etc., which we use as a shortening 
and as a medium in which to cook other foods, are pure fats, but 
many other fats contain water, mineral matter and a varying amount 
of protein. Even butter is only S4 per cent, fat, the rest being water, 
protein (curd from milk) and mineral matter. 

The importance of fat in the diet cannot be overestimated. It 
does not build up muscular tissues but yields heat and energy. It 
is almost a pure fuel, furnishing the body with two and one-fourth 
times as much energy as an equal amount of carbohydrate foods, and 
in fact yielding weight for weight more energy than any other food. 

Fat is not only of value as an energy-yielding food but has special 
dietetic value as a flavor food, making other foods more appetizing 
and palatable. It also exerts a good influence on the digestive proc- 
esses by stimulating the flow of the bile and the pancreatic juices. 
This helps in the digestion of the other foods and in the elimination 
of waste products. 

Although the carbohydrates also furnish heat and energy to the body 
they cannot entirely replace the fat, and a diet deficient in fat is in- 
adequate, weakens the resistance of the body and endangers the 
health of the individual. Sufficient fat is especially necessary in the 
diet of children and young people, and is most useful as a source of energy 
when carbohydrate foods must be limited, as in cases of diabetes. 

The amount of fat required daily varies with the climate, the in- 
dividual and the occupation. Thus people living in cold climates 
generally consume larger amounts of fat than those living in warm 
countries. This, however, may be partly due to the fact that cereals 
and vegetables cannot be grown to any great extent in very cold 
climates. People doing severe muscular work eat more fat than those 
leading a sedentary life; they require extra fuel, which can be fur- 
nished in concentrated form by the fats. 

Some people because of personal peculiarities are unable to relish 

much fat, but statistics show that the average amount of pure fat 

consumed daily by the ordinary individual varies from one and one- 

ialf to four and one-half ounces, which is equal to from three to seven 



tablespoons, respectively, or from three to seven small servings of 
butter. This, together with the other fats eaten daily in the various 
foods, is generally more than sufficient for the ordinary individual. 

Fat is found in varying amounts in all animal foods. The amount 
in meat differs with the kind of animal and the part of the body from 
which it is taken. For example, pork, duck and goose are rich in fat, 
while it is almost entirely absent in breast of chicken and fillet of beef. 

In fish, the percentage of fat ranges from .4 per cent, in cod to 
12.8 per cent, in salmon. Generally speaking the white fish are the 
lean fish and the dark fish the fat fish. 

The percentage of fat in the cereals and grains is greatest in those 
growing in cold climates, and varies from 7.3 per cent, in oats to .5 
per cent, in rice. Corn ranks next to oats in the percentage of fat,, 
containing 4.6 per cent. Mazola oil, one of our commercial products, 
is made from corn. 

The fruits and vegetables, with the exception of the olive, are 
almost wholly lacking in fat. But this deficiency is overcome when 
we add butter to the vegetables and cream or salad dressing to fruits. 
Some of our vegetables, like the onion, contain a volatile oil. While 
this has no actual food value, it is of great value as a flavor. It is 
this pungent oil which is so irritating to the eyes and makes onions 
so disagreeable to peel. The discomfort thus caused can be some- 
what overcome by peeling the onions under water. 

Nuts are one of our most valuable sources of fat. The amount 
ranges from 4.5 per cent, in chestnuts to 57.4 per cent, in cocoanuts. 
We have peanut butter and peanut oil from peanuts, nut margarine 
and cocoanut oil from cocoanuts, and many other nut butters made by 
grinding nuts rich in oil to a paste. The nut butters are not only rich 
in fat, but also contain a good amount of protein. 

Cream, the fat of milk, and butter which is made from cream are 
the fats provided by nature for the young and are therefore the best 
fats for children, especially young children. They are not only the 
easiest to digest and the most completely absorbed, but contain the 
necessary growth-promoting substances which are essential in the food 
for the child, and if other fats are substituted in the diet of the child 
whole milk must be freely used. 

All pure fats yield practically the same amount of energy when 
burned outside the body, but since there is a difference in their di- 
gestibility and absorption the energy obtained by the body varies with 
this difference, and this seems to correspond with the difference in 

their melting point. 

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Thus, liquid oils, like olive oil, emulsified fats, like cream and fat 
in egg yolk, and fats with a low melting point, like butter, are the 
quickest and easiest to digest. 

The digestion of fats depends also upon the manner in which they 
are served and the care exercised in the cooking. All the fats are 
quite completely digested if taken in right amounts, in correct com- 
binations and properly cooked, but they can be made very indigestible 
by improper cooking, or if served in wrong combinations. 

If a fat is heated to a high temperature it splits up into indigestible 
fats and fatty acids, which are very irritating to the delicate lining 
of tho stomach and intestines, often causing indigestion. Great care 
should always be taken to keep fat from burning when cooking foods 
rich in fat, like bacon or pork. Bacon, if properly cooked, is one of 
our most easily digested fats, but bacon which is burned on the out- 
side and only partially cooked on the inside is most indigestible and 
unpalatable. 

Very little digestion of fat takes place in the stomach; the gastric 
lipase is probably strong enough to take care of the liquid or emulsi- 
fied fats only. Foods rich in fat, like over-rich puddings and salads, 
food that is carelessly cooked in fat, so that a large amount is ab- 
sorbed and a waterproof coating formed around the food, and very 
fat meats, like pork, often cause indigestion because the fat surrounds 
the protein and carbohydrate in these foods in such a manner that 
they cannot be reached by the digestive juices until they have been 
mechanically separated from the fat. The gastric digestion is then 
retarded, the food remains a longer time in the stomach, and un- 
comfortable sensations and indigestion result. 

Fat is a more costly source of energy than the carbohydrates, butter, 
cream and bacon being the most expensive; but economy can be prac- 
ticed by using the less expensive fats for cooking purposes and in 
allowing no fat to go to waste. 

Many housekeepers are extravagant and very wasteful in their use 
of fat. They throw away drippings and fat scraps, without the thought 
that these drops saved daily will soon form a pound. They pride 
themselves on using butter in cooking instead of being proud to use a 
substitute. Do you waste fat in any of the following ways: — 

1. By failing to get from the butcher all the trimmings for which 
rou have paid. The butcher does not waste these, they are saved 
^nd sold again for soap. Much good food fat from beef and chicken is 

isted in this way. 

By failing to cook fat which is to be served with meat until it 

\o crisp and appetizing that it will not be wasted on the plate. 



3. By failing to trim excess fat from the meat before it is cooked, 
and trying it out separately. Do not serve more fat with the meat 
than will be eaten. 

4. By failing to keep the fat frOm burning during cooking. If 
burned it will be unappetizing and indigestible. 

5. By failing to cook bacon in the oven instead of in a pan over 
the flame. If cooked in the oven the fat is more thoroughly tried out, 
it needs less care and there is less odor and smoke in the kitchen. 

6. By failing to serve only as much butter at a meal as will be eaten. 

7. By failing to use some butter substitute in place of butter in 
cooking. 

8. By failing to use top milk, condensed milk, or evaporated milk 
in place of cream whenever possible, especially in coffee and tea. 

9. By failing to buy olive oil or its substitutes in large quantities, — 
a small bottle is expensive. 

10. By failing to make soap from the fats that cannot be utilized 
any longer for cooking purposes or as a food. 

Some people hesitate to use oleomargarine and butter substitutes 
because they do not realize that they are healthful and nutritious and 
are much better than a poor grade of butter. 

Oleomargarine. 

Oleomargarine or butterine is made by churning together with milk 
a combination of vegetable and animal fats similar in properties to 
natural butter. The fats most often used are soft beef fats, neutral 
lard, cottonseed oil, cocoanut fat and peanut oil. (Neutral lard is 
lard that has been purified and freed from animal flavors.) These 
fats are mixed with varying amounts of butter, according to the grade 
of oleomargarine, to give the butter flavor. In high-grade oleomar- 
garine a large amount of butter is mixed with the artificial product, so 
that it has a most agreeable taste and flavor very similar to that of 
butter, but the lack of the fine flavor of butter in the cheaper grade 
of oleomargarine is not noticeable when it is used for cooking purposes. 
Oleomargarine, at a lower cost than butter, has the same calorific 
value and should be more largely used. 

Renovated or Process Butter. 

Poor or rancid butter is melted in large tanks, the salts and in/ 
purities which settle to the bottom are drawn off, objectionable ode/ 
and flavors are removed, and it is then mixed with whole milk a 
churned again. This, too, is better than an inferior grade of but/ 
and wholesome. 



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Cooking Butter. 

This is butter that is not as fresh as table butter and can be bought 
at a lower price. If at all rancid, it should be renovated before using 
by washing it thoroughly in several cold waters. If this is not suffi- 
cient, add to each pound of butter from one-fourth to one teaspoon 
of baking soda, and melt slowly until a froth rises and the sputtering 
ceases. Skim and pour carefully from dregs. If not to be used at 
once, add to each pound one and one-half teaspoons of salt. Use one- 
third less of this butter than ordinary butter in cooking. 

Beef Suet Substitute. 

Cut beef suet in small pieces and cover with water; let it soak for 
a day, changing the water once. Drain and put in a kettle with one- 
half cup of skim milk for every pound of suet. Let it cook very slowly 
until boiling has entirely ceased. When partially cooled, pour off care- 
fully. This fat has no objectionable flavor, and can be well substituted 
for butter in cooking. To make a softer fat add one pound of lard 
to five pounds of suet. 

Beef Suet-Pork-Butter. 

Cover two pounds of beef suet, cut in small pieces, with water and 
cook in a double boiler until all the fat is extracted. Strain into a 
kettle of hot water and let stand until fat is cool and solid. Treat 
two pounds of pork fat in the same way. Melt equal amounts of 
butter until it is like oil. Remove pork fat and beef fat from water, 
add to strained butter and melt slowly together. After the fats are 
well blended, boil up together and skim. Pour into tin or earthen 
jars, and keep in a cool, dry place. This fat will have the flavor of 
butter, is cheaper and has the same food value. 

Extraction of Fats. 

FatSsare tried out or rendered to free them from connective tissues 
or impurities. Suet and scraps must be tried out and then clarified, 
while fat from soup or drippings needs only to be clarified. 

To try out Fat. 

Cut fat in small pieces and put in double boiler or in a pan in the 

oven and cook slowly several hours. When fat is melted, strain it 

hrough cheese cloth, pressing to obtain all the fat. The scraps left 

\ay be used in steamed puddings. To lessen any undesirable flavors 

rendered fats, add equal amounts of water or one cup of milk to 

pounds of fat, heat slowly and boil one hour. Cool, allow fat to 



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014 338 927 3 # 

harden in a cake on top, and remove carefully. Heat fat again slowly 
to drive off any water. If color and flavor are not satisfactory the 
process may be repeated several times. 

To clarify Fat. 

Heat fat slowly with slices of raw potato, cook until potato is 
brown, and strain through cheese cloth. Some of the impurities will 
collect on potato, and the rest will settle to the bottom. 

Flavoring Drippings. 

The flavor of drippings, such as mutton, ham, etc., can be greatly 
changed by heating them slowly with a whole onion or sweet herbs, 
such as thyme, parsley, bay leaf, etc. These drippings can then be 
used satisfactorily in made-over dishes or soups. 

Care of Fat in Home. 

Fats of all kinds unless properly stored become soft and rancid. 
They should be kept covered in a cold, dry place. Fats keep longer 
if left unbroken. For this reason it is best to strain the clarified fats 
into several small jars instead of one large jar, so that a small portion 
may be used without disturbing the rest. 

Fat that cannot longer be utilized as a food or in cooking should be 
made into soap. 

Soap. 
5 pounds melted clarified fat. 
1 pound lye. 
1 quart cold water. 

\ cup. cold water. 
3 tablespoons borax. 
\ cup ammonia. 
1 teaspoon salt. 

Dissolve lye in cold water and let it stand until cool, then add 
melted fat slowly, stirring constantly. Mix other ingredients together 
and add to first mixture. Stir until thick and lemon colored. Pour 
in a pan lined with paper, mark into squares, and let harden. When 
firm, break apart and pile so that the air will circulate around it freely 
to dry it. Allow the pieces to stand at least four weeks before using. 

This recipe will make twenty-one bars of soap at a cost of less than 
15 cents. 

Note. — Do not use an aluminum or enamel kettle which has son 
of the enamel loosened. Use large kettle; water will boil up vigorous 
when added to lye. 



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